California Girls
by othfan80
Summary: Sam runs away after Julian goes back to LA. Brooke finds her and realizes she loves Julian. Julian/Brooke/Sam
1. Chapter 1

**Set during season six right after Julian leaves to go back to LA. Julian/Brooke/Sam**

* * *

"Sam…what are you doing here?" Julian looked shocked to find Sam on his doorstep.

"You invited me, remember?" Sam replied.

Julian had invited her and Brooke to come to LA with him, but Brooke had declined. He'd left alone and heartbroken. For just a second Julian got his hopes up that Brooke had changed her mind, but a survey of his front yard told him that Sam was alone.

"Where's Brooke?" Julian asked.

Sam shrugged. "Aren't you going to invite me in?" She slipped past Julian without waiting for a response.

"Sam, does Brooke know you're here?" Julian asked. He had a strong feeling that Brooke had no idea where her daughter was right now. This was bad. He'd witnessed firsthand how upset Brooke had been last time Sam ran away.

"No," Sam admitted quietly.

Julian reached for his cell phone to call Brooke. He knew she had to be worried sick. Sam grabbed his hand to stop him. "Wait. Just hear me out," she pleaded.

"Sam, I've seen Brooke when she's worried about you and it's not pretty," Julian said.

"Just give me five minutes. Five minutes won't make a difference," Sam said.

Julian sighed. "OK. I'm timing you. Go."

"She's too scared to admit she loves you! She's been so sad since you left. It's so obvious that she wants to be with you. Every time I try to talk to her about it, she uses me as a lame excuse. She says she can't move to LA because of me. It's bullshit! I don't want her to use me as an excuse! I don't want to be the reason she won't let herself be happy. I know she should follow her heart, but she's too stubborn, so I took matters into my own hands. I'm sorry I ran, but don't you see? Now she has to come get me! She has to see you again and face her fears!" Sam explained.

Julian nodded. He couldn't condone what Sam had done because he knew what it would do to Brooke, but he had to admit he was looking forward to a second chance with Brooke. He refused to believe their love story was over. Brooke Davis was it for him. "I don't know whether I should yell at you or thank you."

Sam smirked. "None of the above. I think you should call Brooke. She probably won't answer because she's Brooke and she's too chicken to talk to you. Leave a message and tell her that I'm here and she needs to come get me. Then give her a taste of her own medicine and don't answer when she calls back. That way she can't tell you to send me back. She has to come."

"OK, Cupid," Julian replied. "You might want to wipe that smirk off your face, though. You do know she's going to kill you when she gets here?"

"At least then she can't use me as an excuse not to be with you," Sam said. She wasn't scared of Brooke. She did feel bad for making Brooke worry, but if that was what it took for Brooke to be happy, then it was worth it.

Julian called Brooke, and, just as Sam had predicted, Brooke didn't answer. He left a voicemail assuring her that Sam was OK. Brooke called back within sixty seconds. Julian hesitated.

Sam noticed his hesitation and hit the end call button before he could answer it. "Don't answer! If she tells you to send me back, this will all have been for nothing."

Julian sighed. "She's going to be really pissed off."

"At me. Not you," Sam pointed out.

"I think she's going to be really pissed off at both of us," Julian replied.

"She doesn't have a reason to be mad at you! So what if you didn't answer? She didn't answer when you called," Sam said.

"Since when has Brooke Davis needed a reason to be mad at me?" Julian said sarcastically.

Sam smirked. "I'll protect you."

Julian smiled. "How did you get here?"

"I exchanged the ticket you bought," Sam replied.

"And the airline just sold you a plane ticket even though you're an unaccompanied minor?" Julian asked skeptically.

"I'm fifteen, not five!" Sam cried out.

"OK. OK." Julian held up his hands in defeat. "So you flew to LA. How did you get here?"

"I hitchhiked," Sam said.

"Sam!" Julian scolded.

"Just kidding," Sam said quickly. "I took a cab."

"Did you pay for the cab?" Julian asked.

"Julian, do you really think the cab driver would have left if I didn't pay him? I may not be a rich movie producer, but I'm not broke." Sam smirked.

Julian grinned. "OK, Brooke would kill me if I didn't take care of you, so I guess I need to feed you."

Sam raised her eyebrows. "Feed me? I'm not a dog."

"That's too bad because I think Brooke might be considering investing in a leash for you after this one," Julian shot back. "Come on. What do you want?" He led the way to his car.

"Pizza?" Sam suggested.

Julian laughed. "You're in LA and you want pizza? Have you ever tried sushi?"

Sam made a face. "Uncooked fish?"

"Have you ever tried it?" Julian asked again. Sam shook her head. "Then how do you know you won't like it?"

Sam shrugged.

"We're going to go to this great sushi place and if you don't like it, we can pick up a pizza on the way home," Julian said. Sam's face lit up. "What are you so happy about?"

"Nothing." Sam looked down. "I just liked hearing you call your house _home_."

"Sam, I meant it when I said I wanted you to come, too. I want to be a family with you and Brooke. I want my house to be our home," Julian said.

Sam looked up and nodded. "I want that, too." She wanted it more than he could imagine. She'd always longed for a family. Brooke had been the first person in Sam's life to feel like family and Julian was the second. Sam didn't want to live on the other side of the country from the guy she'd come to love as a father figure.

Both of their cell phones rang non-stop through dinner. They didn't have to look at their phones to know it was Brooke. They still managed to have a nice dinner. Sam actually liked sushi even though the idea of eating raw fish had always been a turn off.

"Now you're officially a California girl," Julian teased as they got back in the car.

"I don't think so. California girls are blonde and tan," Sam replied. "And I've never even been to the beach."

Julian was trying to decide how to respond to Sam's first comment. He knew she was kidding, but part of him wondered if she would be happy in California or if she'd feel insecure. He didn't really know what to say, so he moved on to her second comment. He actually knew how to fix it. "You've never been to the beach? I'll take you tomorrow."

"Don't you have to work? I don't want to like be in the way," Sam said quickly.

"You're not in the way. I wanted you to come here, remember? Anyway, I'm not letting you out of my sight. If I lose you, Brooke will never forgive me," Julian said.

"How mad do you think she is?" Sam wondered.

"How many missed calls do you have?" Julian said in reply.

Sam smiled and glanced down at her cell phone. "Twenty-six. That's a record."

Julian looked at his phone. "I only have nine missed calls. You win."

"More isn't actually better in this case," Sam said.

Julian and Sam exchanged a glance. They knew they would have to face the wrath of Brooke the next day.

Julian showed Sam around his house. He had a small kitchen with a breakfast bar, a living room with a brown couch and a brown and blue rug, his bedroom, which was sparse and modern, and a guest room.

"This is your room," Julian said as he led the way into the guest room. Sam beamed.

They sat down in the living room. Julian had a huge DVD collection, and he let Sam choose a movie to watch. She spent a good fifteen minutes poring over the selection before she put _Breakfast at Tiffany's_ in and joined Julian on the couch.

"And I thought you would choose a horror movie," Julian commented.

"When you've lived through your own horror story, scary movies aren't that scary," Sam said.

"Your story has a happy ending," Julian said softly.

"My story is still being written," Sam corrected.

"You're only fifteen. You have your whole life ahead of you," Julian said.

Sam made eye contact with Julian. "That's not what I meant and you know it. Tomorrow Brooke decides how our story ends."

Julian nodded. "And it will either be a great love story or a great tragedy for me, but you can have a happy ending either way."

Sam shook her head. "No, I can't. Brooke isn't happy without you and I'm not happy that she's not happy. It's a vicious cycle."

Julian didn't know what to say. He knew Sam was right. Brooke was the only person who could make them all happy. Unfortunately, he knew Brooke needed time to deal with her issues. Sam had forced her hand by running off.

Sam fell asleep halfway through the movie. Julian was struck by her innocence and vulnerability while she slept peacefully. Sam was rarely peaceful when she was awake. He knew her well enough to know she was vulnerable, but she rarely showed that side of herself to anyone. Her innocence had been shattered a long time ago.

Julian covered Sam with a brown throw blanket and went to his bedroom. He called the one person who knew Brooke better than anyone to get some advice.

"So your phone is working?"

"I take it you've heard I'm not answering Brooke's calls?" Julian replied.

"Oh yeah. Do you have a death wish?" Peyton asked.

Julian groaned. "How bad is it?"

"I wouldn't want to be you. Let's recap. Her daughter ran off. She was worried sick. You called and left a message that Sam was with you. She's called a dozen times to check on Sam and you've ignored her calls," Peyton said.

"I didn't know Sam was coming. She just showed up on my doorstep. Before I did anything else, I called Brooke. And she didn't answer when I called either," Julian said defensively.

"I'm not the one you need to explain yourself to," Peyton said.

"I love Brooke. I know she's scared, but from what Sam says, she loves me, too. She's using Sam as an excuse not to be with me. Sam wants all of us to be a family," Julian blurted out.

Peyton sighed. "I know Brooke better than anyone. Bitchtoria majorly screwed that girl up. She doesn't think she's good enough. You can make her happy. I hope she lets you. She booked the first flight out in the morning. She gets in at twelve thirty-five."


	2. Chapter 2

"Sam, breakfast!" Julian called at 7:00 am sharp.

Sam rubbed her eyes sleepily. She'd slept on the couch all night and sunlight was pouring in through the windows. She looked at her cell phone to see what time it was and sighed wistfully. "I thought I might actually get to sleep in for a change."

Julian smirked. "I've heard how much you love your seven am wake up calls."

Sam sat down at the breakfast bar. "You're a morning person, aren't you?" She muttered.

Julian laughed. "And you're obviously a grouch until you get your coffee." He pushed a takeaway coffee cup towards her and then handed her a handful of sugar packets. Sam grinned as she dumped way too much sugar in the cup and sipped. Julian gestured toward a box of donuts. "Help yourself."

Sam grabbed two chocolate donuts. "What are you trying to do? Give me a sugar high?"

"You're going to need your energy. We have a big day at the beach," Julian replied.

"I didn't bring a swimsuit," Sam mumbled in between bites.

"We can make a few stops. I actually wanted your opinion on something," Julian said nervously. He waited for Sam to make eye contact. "I love Brooke. I want her to know that I want to be with her and nothing is going to change that. Not you. Not distance on a map. Not even her. I think I'm going to propose to her."

Sam forced a smile for Julian's sake. She was genuinely happy that he was going to propose. Nothing would make her happier than the three of them becoming a family officially. But, she didn't know how Brooke would react. Would Brooke freak out and break Julian's heart all over again? "I really hope she says yes," Sam said.

Julian took Sam to the mall to get a swimsuit first. He vetoed the string bikini she tried on. Sam didn't mind. It felt good to have a father figure who cared about her. She chose a black bikini and black and white board shorts. Julian made her get a tank top to wear over the bikini top, too.

Then they went to the jewelry store. Julian asked Sam what she thought. Sam pointed to a beautiful princess cut on a platinum band. "That looks like Brooke."

The salesman pulled the ring out of the display case for Julian to get a closer look. He could imagine proposing to Brooke with this ring. He bought it and teased Sam on the way back to the car, "Did you have to pick the most expensive ring in the store?"

"Brooke's worth it," Sam replied.

Julian nodded. "She is." She was also worth waiting for, but Julian hoped she wouldn't make him wait.

They went to the beach. Sam looked more content than he'd ever seen her as they walked along the beach with the waves crashing at their feet. The water was cold, but if felt refreshing as the sun beat down on them.

Julian noticed a boy about Sam's age checking her out and shot him a warning look. It hadn't taken him long to feel protective over her.

Julian went to get drinks for them and Sam sat down to wait. The boy who'd had his eye on her took his chance. "Hey. I'm Michael. Are you new in town?"

Michael was tall and muscular. His body was bronze from long afternoons at the beach. He had dark brown hair.

"Is it that obvious?" Sam asked with a grin.

Michael flashed a perfect smile. "It's just you're really pale. If you lived here, you'd probably have a tan."

"I'm from North Carolina," Sam explained.

"Are you visiting or here to stay?" Michael asked.

Sam didn't know. She'd be finding out shortly. "Here to stay," she replied. She didn't want to give Michael's the Cliff's Notes version of why she was really there and how up in the air her future was at the moment.

Michael smiled again. "I can show you around." He gave Sam his number. He saw Julian approaching and quickly said goodbye.

"I leave you alone for five minutes and you get into trouble," Julian commented as he handed Sam a frozen lemonade.

"We were just talking," Sam said defensively.

"I'm not blind, Sam. I saw him give you his phone number. You like him," Julian accused.

Sam shrugged. "I don't know anyone my age in LA."

"He's fifteen? Why isn't he in school?" Julian asked.

"I talked to him for like two minutes! I don't know his life story!" Sam said. Julian acting like an overprotective father had been cute at first, but it was getting old fast. Sam let that slide because she had more important things on her mind. "But that reminds me. I think we should enroll me in school here."

"We have to talk to Brooke first," Julian replied.

"If we enroll me before we talk to Brooke, it will give her one less excuse to not move here. She can't throw me being in school in Tree Hill in your face because I'll be in school here!" Sam said.

"I don't think I can enroll you in school. I'm not your legal guardian," Julian pointed out. He grinned devilishly. "But let's see what we can do." He figured worst case if they picked up a brochure for a school it would make Brooke a little less worried about moving Sam to a new city.

"And you are Samantha's…?" The principal asked.

Julian and Sam exchanged a look, both at a loss for what to say. Sam spoke up first. She was used to explaining her lack of family and the weird pseudo-family she'd formed. "He's my foster mom's fiancé." Julian shot her a questioning look since he hadn't proposed yet and Brooke sure as hell hadn't said yes. She hadn't even been able to tell him she loved him. "My foster mom is working, so he's here to enroll me."

"If your foster mom is your legal guardian, she will need to sign the paperwork, but I'd be happy to show you around now," the principal said. She gave Julian and Sam a tour of the school. "Were you involved in any extracurricular activities at your old school?"

Sam wasn't the super-involved type, but she wanted to make a good impression. "I wrote for the school paper." Technically she hadn't been on the school paper staff, but Haley had published a few of her essays in the paper.

The principal nodded. "I'll show you the journalism room." She wrapped up the tour and sent Julian and Sam home with a brochure and some paperwork.

Julian darted anxious glances at Sam as they drove. Finally he asked, "You do know Brooke might not say yes?"

"Do you think she'll say yes?" Sam asked nervously.

"I hope so, but I don't know. One of the things I love about her is that she's unpredictable," Julian replied.

"I'm sorry," Sam mumbled quietly.

"For what?" Julian looked up in surprise.

"If she says no, it's because of me. I'm the reason she wouldn't come here in the first place," Sam said.

Julian shook his head. "No, you're one of many excuses she used because she's scared. If she's too scared to admit how she feels, I'm happy she'll have you."

"Who will you have?" Sam asked.

Julian sighed. "I'm a big boy. I can take care of myself."

"So can I, but we shouldn't have to," Sam said.

Julian smiled. They pulled up to his house. Brooke was waiting on his doorstep. She looked completely and totally pissed off. "Are you ready for D-day?" He asked as he turned the engine off.

"As ready as I'll ever be."

Julian put a supportive hand on Sam's shoulder as they walked toward the furious brunette. Brooke stood up. She was glaring frosty daggers at them. Sam thought Brooke looked even angrier than she had been when Sam threw a party in Brooke's boutique and that was really saying something.

"Do you know how worried I was?" Brooke's voice was eerily calm.

"Julian told you I was OK," Sam protested. Julian unlocked the door and they followed him into the living room.

"No, he told my voicemail you were OK and then neither of you could manage to pick up the damn phone!" Brooke said angrily.

"Are you mad because I came here or because you had to come here and see Julian?" Sam yelled.

"No, I am mad because you ran off AGAIN! I thought we were past this, but you still run off every time anything goes wrong! Did you even think about how worried I would be?" Brooke screamed at the top of her lungs.

"Yes, but maybe I thought it was better that you were worried than unhappy without Julian!" Sam retorted.

Brooke turned her attention from Sam to Julian, though she didn't look any less pissed. "And you! What the hell were you thinking? My daughter runs away and you can't be bothered to answer the phone!"

"I told him not to!" Sam cried out helplessly.

Brooke spun around to face Sam. "What?"

"I didn't want you to tell him to send me back to Tree Hill! I wanted you to come to LA!" Sam explained.

"I hope you had a fun trip because you won't be leaving the house EVER AGAIN!" Brooke screamed.

"Fine! I'm going to go to my room and let you two talk! Maybe you'll be honest for once!" Sam said angrily. She stomped back to the guest room and slammed the door.

Brooke looked at Julian. "Her room?"

Julian nodded and stuffed his hands in his pockets. His right hand closed around the velvet jewelry box he'd been carrying since that morning. "I meant it when I asked you guys to come with me. I want you here. I have plenty of room for Sam and we found a school for her today-"

"YOU found a school for MY daughter?" Brooke asked with venom in her voice.

"I love how much you love Sam, but I care about her, too, and we just wanted to show you that she could be happy here," Julian said. "Stop trying to think of excuses not to be with me and just tell me if you want to be with me."

Brooke stared at Julian. "It's not that simple! I-"

"Brooke, stop. Just answer the question! Do you want to be with me?" Julia asked softly but firmly.

"I want to be with you, but-"

"No buts. If you want to be with me, we will make it work. I know you're worried about Sam, but she wants to be here with us. You don't want to uproot her. You've busted your ass to give her a stable home. We can give her that here. We can give her the one thing she's always wanted—a family. I love you, Brooke Davis." Julian kneeled down and pulled the ring out. "Will you marry me?"

Brooke looked shocked and horrified. She stared at Julian open-mouthed. She knew in her heart that she loved Julian. She'd missed him every day since he left Tree Hill. She tried to tell herself she was doing the right thing for Sam by staying in Tree Hill, but seeing how happy Sam was here in LA made her wonder if this was right for all three of them.

Julian knew her so well and he knew Sam almost as well as Brooke did. He'd been the one to help Brooke look for Sam last time the teen disappeared. Anyone could see how much he cared about Sam. Sam had spent her life running _from_ things and here she was running _to_ Julian.

Brooke had been thinking about adopting Sam for awhile now. She knew how badly Sam wanted a family, and she wanted to be the one to give it to her. Brooke was unbelievably touched that Julian wanted to give Sam a family, too.

It struck Brooke again how different Julian was from Owen, who had never been able to understand how much Brooke cared about Sam. Julian was different from any other guy she'd ever dated, and she'd dated a lot of guys. Julian was different. Julian was better.

After a long silence, Brooke finally said, "Yes. I love you, Julian Baker."

Julian grinned as he got back on his feet and put the ring on Brooke's finger. Brooke admired the ring. "I love it."

"Sam helped me pick it out," Julian admitted.

Brooke smiled. "I should go talk to her."

Julian nodded.

Brooke knocked on the door and then opened it. Sam was lying on the bed reading. She instantly spotted the diamond sparkling on Brooke's left hand and grinned. Brooke followed her foster daughter's gaze and said, "Thanks for helping him."

"I know you're mad, but I just wanted you to be happy. You deserve to be happy," Sam said.

"So do you. I want to make you happy. Are you sure you'll be happy here? I want you to have stability in your life and your life is in Tree Hill," Brooke said.

"I don't have anything left in Tree Hill. My only friend just moved to Charlotte. I like it here. I can be happy here," Sam replied.

"And you're happy with me, right?" Brooke asked nervously.

"Yeah," Sam replied with a smile.

"Good. I've been thinking and I know how badly you want a family, and I want to be the one to give it to you. I want to adopt you," Brooke said.

Sam looked surprised, but she said, "OK."

"OK," Brooke said with a smile.


	3. Chapter 3

**Thanks for the reviews! :) I wasn't actually planning on continuing this story after the second chapter. I mainly just wanted to write Sam feeling bad that she was the reason Brooke couldn't go to California with Julian and taking action to bring them together. I don't have very many ideas to continue this, but a few people asked me to update so here goes. It probably won't be as good because I didn't really plan it ahead of time**

* * *

Brooke took Julian's car to the grocery store and the liquor store. She wanted to cook dinner for Julian and Sam to celebrate the engagement and soon-to-be adoption.

Sam heard Brooke leave and poked her head out of her room. "Is the coast clear?"

Julian smirked. "She's not here. And I think you're safe even if she were here. Now that she's adopting you, I highly doubt she'll kill you. It'd look bad if you died on her watch."

Sam sat down on the couch beside Julian. He'd never seen Sam look this happy before. He was part of the reason she was happy and it warmed his heart.

"Congratulations. You got your happy ending," Sam said with a smile.

"You got yours as well," Julian replied.

Sam nodded. "I know." She smiled a little. "I didn't used to believe in happy endings."

Julian laughed. "I was always a hopeless romantic."

"You got the hopeless part right." Sam smirked.

"I got the girl, didn't I?" Julian asked with a cocky grin.

"With a lot of help. I hooked you guys up _and_ got Brooke here," Sam pointed out.

"You did _not_ hook us up," Julian said.

"Did to," Sam retorted. She smiled to herself as she remembered the day she'd talked to Julian in the café. She sauntered over and sat down across from him to tell him that he could help her. He said she could help him, too, and asked about Brooke even though he'd come to town to try to win Peyton back. Sam hadn't wanted to help him at first, but she gave in. Everything happens for a reason.

Julian was remembering that day as well. After he talked to Sam, he'd gone to Clothes Over Bros to talk to Brooke and found the brunette dancing to eighties music. He'd called her the priss from the Breakfast Club. He smirked. "She called me a stoner. Then you called, and she called me a pervert."

Sam raised her eyebrows. "So much for love at first sight."

"No, I think she hated me," Julian said with a grin.

"That makes two of us," Sam said.

"How did you guys meet?" Julian asked.

"I shoplifted from her and assaulted her," Sam replied with a totally straight face.

"I'd heard stories, but I didn't think they were true," Julian said.

"Oh, they're true," Brooke said.

Julian and Sam looked up and saw Brooke juggling shopping bags. They got up to help her carry the bags to the kitchen. Brooke promptly kicked them out of the kitchen so she could start dinner.

When dinner was ready, Brooke went into the living room to get Julian and Sam. Julian was sitting on the couch with his laptop. "Hey, where's Sam?"

Julian raised his eyebrows. "Didn't you send her to her room?"

"No, she sent herself to her room," Brooke said defensively. "I just told her she's not leaving the house ever again."

Brooke knocked on Sam's door and then opened it. "You can leave your room." Sam smiled a little. Brooke smirked and added, "You just can't leave the house."

"School's overrated anyway." Sam smirked.

"I could home school you," Brooke teased.

"In what? Fashion?" Sam retorted.

"Maybe I'll just send you to boarding school, Smartass," Brooke teased.

Sam smiled. "A few months ago that would have scared me."

Brooke smiled and sat down on the bed beside Sam. "I never thought you'd believe that my home was your home for as long as you wanted it to be. I'm glad you finally do." She laughed. "How many times did you think I was kicking you out?"

"There might have been a few times," Sam said.

There had been more than a few times. Sam had spent every day waiting for Brooke to kick her out just like every other foster family had. There had been two times in particular that Sam was _sure_ she was a goner. When Sam had thrown a party in Brooke's store and ruined Peyton's wedding dress, she'd been absolutely shocked that Brooke didn't kick her out. Anyone else would have beat on her and then sent her packing with a black eye to remember them by. The other time Sam had been convinced her days with Brooke were numbered was when Social Services called Brooke to tell her a baby was available. Sam knew Brooke really wanted a baby.

Julian and Sam sat down at the kitchen table. Brooke served fresh fruit, a salad, a cheese plate and shrimp cocktail. She'd put a champagne bottle on ice. Julian popped the cork and poured two glasses.

"Can I have some?" Sam asked.

"Are you twenty-one?" Brooke smirked.

"Only when I have your ID," Sam retorted.

Brooke shot Sam a dirty look and handed the teen a glass of water.

When Brooke sat down, Julian held up his glass. "A toast to love stories that have happy endings." He locked eyes with Sam and the teen smiled. After they ate dinner Brooke brought a cardboard box of cupcakes out.

Julian, Brooke and Sam sat down in the living room to watch TV when they were finished eating. They felt like a family, which was what each of them had always wanted.

When Sam went to bed, Brooke moved closer to Julian and rested her head on his shoulder. Julian smiled contentedly at the woman in his arms. He felt like the luckiest guy in the world. "What would you say if I said I wanted to adopted Sam, too?" He murmured.

Brooke looked up in surprise. She didn't know why it never ceased to surprise her that Julian was so good to Sam. She supposed old habits were hard to break, and she was used to guys who operated like Owen. Julian had bent over backwards to prove he was different, just as Brooke had to do to prove that she was different to Sam. "Are you sure? Not all families are official. We're a family no matter what." Brooke said.

"I've never been more sure about anything in my life," Julian replied.

Brooke smiled. "OK. We can talk to her tomorrow, or you can talk to her alone."

"I think I should talk to her alone," Julian replied. He flashed a perfect smile. "But there are other _things_ I don't like to do alone." Brooke raised her eyebrows. Julian kissed Brooke.

"Let's take this into the bedroom. I can help you with…_things_," Brooke said.


	4. Chapter 4

"Is that your wedding dress?" Sam asked as she looked over Brooke's shoulder to catch a glimpse of the sketchpad. Brooke had been working all morning, and she hid her sketchpad every time Julian got within five feet of her.

"Yeah," Brooke said with a smile. It had taken her several hours, but she'd finally designed the perfect dress. She'd chosen an elegant yet classic style. She wanted to use ivory fabric. She couldn't wait to get started making it.

"You'll look beautiful in it. Just don't pull a Peyton," Sam said with a smirk.

Brooke raised her eyebrows. "And you don't even think about going anywhere near my dress with spray paint."

"That spray paint inspired a clothing line," Sam reminded Brooke.

"No, it didn't!" Brooke lied. She would never admit that in the wake of Sam's party, Brooke had done some of her best work ever.

"Keep telling yourself that," Sam retorted.

"I want you to be my maid of honor," Brooke said.

"Are you sure?" Sam asked skeptically.

"Of course I'm sure. You're my daughter," Brooke said with a smile.

"Yeah, but maid of honor is a big deal. You haven't even known me for that long. I would totally understand if you wanted Peyton to be your maid of honor," Sam said.

"I know you, Samantha. It doesn't matter how long I've known you. I love you. I want you to be my maid of honor," Brooke said.

Sam smiled. "OK. I'm going to throw you a kick ass bachelorette party."

"Language, Samantha. And your party-throwing days are so over. Peyton and Haley will throw the bachelorette party," Brooke said.

"Fine be that way," Sam retorted. "Is Jamie going to be the ring bearer?"

"Yes. He's going to look so cute in his tux," Brooke gushed.

"Should Julian be worried?" Sam teased.

Brooke rolled her eyes. "You might want to watch the smartass comments or I'll make you wear pink."

"No pink," Sam said quickly.

Brooke quickly hid her sketchpad as Julian came in from his morning run. He heard Sam's last comment and smirked. "Have you ever seen _27 Dresses_? Whatever Brooke designs for you will be way better than any of those dresses." Brooke looked a little insulted that her fiancé was comparing her designs with hideous bridesmaid dresses that were supposed to be funny in a movie.

Sam raised her eyebrows. "Have _you_ seen _27 Dresses_? Julian Baker likes chick flicks." She smirked.

"I'm a producer. I watch movies as research," Julian said defensively.

"If you want to do some _research_ this afternoon, _The Divine Secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood_ is on Oxygen later today," Sam said with a smirk.

"How do you know that? Did you memorize Oxygen's schedule?" Julian teased. Sam rolled her eyes.

Julian went to take a shower. Brooke disappeared and twenty minutes later both she and Julian emerged from the master bedroom with wet hair, which didn't go unnoticed by Sam.

"Julian works so much better than the shower head," Sam said with a grin.

"Sam! I can't believe you just said that!" Brooke said as her cheeks turned a deep shade of crimson. "I'm going to go look at a potential location for Clothes Over Bros."

Julian hovered near Sam looking a little nervous. Sam stared at him. "Can I help you with something?" She said sarcastically.

Julian sat down beside Sam on the couch and looked into her eyes. "I meant it when I said I wanted you to come to LA, too. I knew you and Brooke were a package deal, and I wanted both of you. I want us to be a family, and I want to give you the family you've always wanted. I want to adopt you, too."

Sam looked surprised. "Julian, you don't have to do this just because you and Brooke are getting married. Brooke loves you, and I want to be here with you guys."

Julian looked a little hurt for a second and then his characteristic smirk returned. "Sam, what's this? You can't believe that I _want_ to adopt you? What happened to the cocky teenager I know and love?"

"No one's ever wanted me before. My birth mom gave me up when I was four. I wasn't good enough for her. None of the foster parents I was with wanted me. It's hard to believe that I went from no one wanting me to you _and_ Brooke wanting me." Sam smiled. "Yeah, of course I want you to adopt me."

"Your birth mom's a dumbass. A lot of parents are. My dad has never believed in me. Only instead of giving me up, he hired me so he could tell me what a failure I am every day. It sounds like Victoria is his evil twin," Julian said.

"She's not that bad," Sam said.

"Yes, she is!"

Sam and Julian both looked up and laughed.

"That's one good thing about being here. We're on the other side of the country from Victoria," Brooke added.

"I hope there's more than one good thing," Julian said.

Brooke smiled. "I can think of a few." She sat down. "I signed the lease. I need to order clothes and hire someone to help me. I think we can open within a week."

Sam raised her eyebrows. "So you have an empty store again?"

"Yeah, but that does not mean I need your _help_ filling it up," Brooke said sarcastically.

"Your store was the busiest I've ever seen it when I filled it up." Sam smirked.

"None of your so-called _friends_ were paying customers. The goal isn't to get people in the store. It's to make a sale," Brooke retorted.

"You know who you sound like right now?" Sam raised her eyebrows. "Victoria."

"That's a cheap shot and you know it," Brooke said with a glare.

Sam shrugged. "I like Victoria."

"Then I'm glad I got you away from her," Brooke replied.

Sam rolled her eyes. "Does she even know we're moving here?"

"No. And I don't think I'm going to tell her." Brooke smirked. "She won't be able to show up uninvited if she doesn't know where we live."


	5. Chapter 5

Sam and Brooke had been in LA for a little over a week and everything was going great. Sam had called Michael to take him up on his offer to show her around as soon as she wasn't grounded anymore.

Sam was waiting by the window wearing a dress from Clothes Over Bros. She saw a cherry red Mustang convertible pull up and then received a text message from Michael.

_Hey I'm here_

"Are you leaving?" Brooke asked. She moved beside Sam and looked out the window to size up the boy her daughter liked.

"Yeah. See you later," Sam said.

"Isn't he supposed to come to the door to pick you up?" Julian asked.

"Not since the fifties." Sam smirked.

"To think I read a parenting book about how to scare your teenage daughter's boyfriend for no reason," Julian said with a grin. Sam rolled her eyes.

Sam got in Michael's convertible. He was wearing dark jeans that fit him perfectly and a dark blue shirt. He flashed a perfect smile. "Hey."

"Hey," Sam said nervously. She was usually confident, but every time she saw Michael her confidence went out the window. He was without question the best looking guy she'd ever laid eyes on.

"Do you like LA?" Michael asked.

"I love it," Sam replied with a smile. She was the happiest she'd ever been in her life. For the first time, she had a family. Brooke had been her first mom, and Sam would have been happy with just Brooke, but now she had a mom and dad and she felt like it couldn't possibly get any better than this.

"The west coast is the best coast." Michael grinned.

Julian and Brooke were cuddling on the couch.

"Are you going to let me in on the wedding plans or am I just supposed to show up in a tux?" Julian smirked.

"Not just any tux. A tux pre-approved by me," Brooke said with a smile.

Julian grinned. "So it's your wedding and I'm just in it?" His tone was friendly, not mad.

"Did you want to weigh in on the flowers?" Brooke raised her eyebrows.

"I want you to have your dream wedding," Julian replied. "I was thinking a fall wedding."

"It _is_ fall," Brooke pointed out.

"I know." Julian grinned. That was the reason he wanted a fall wedding. He couldn't wait to be married to Brooke.

"Do you want a year long engagement?" Brooke asked.

Julian shook his head. "Try month long."

"Julian, do you have any idea how much work goes into planning a wedding? I can't get it done in a month!" Brooke sounded exasperated.

"You're Brooke Davis. You can do anything. You just have to want it." Julian smirked.

"Why are you rushing this?" Brooke asked.

"I can't help it if I can't wait for you to be my wife," Julian said.

"Everyone will think I'm pregnant," Brooke said.

"First comes love. Then comes marriage. Then comes a baby carriage." Julian smirked.

"Do you want to have kids?" Brooke asked.

"What do you call Sam?" Julian said sarcastically.

"A teenager," Brooke retorted.

"I want kids. I've always wanted a big family," Julian said with a smile.

"I want kids, too," Brooke said.

"You're a good mom," Julian murmured. "Sam loves you so much. You're going to be great with a baby."

"After Sam a baby should be a piece of cake." Brooke smirked.

"True story. The baby probably won't throw a party in your store or run away," Julian said with a grin.

"It could crawl away," Brooke said with a smile.

"It? We are talking about a human baby, right?" Julian smirked.

Brooke rolled her eyes. "That's not what I meant. Do you want a boy or girl?"

"Both." Julian smiled.

Brooke smiled. "No babies until we're married. My dress will so not fit if I get pregnant."

"Can we practice?" Julian asked.

"I don't think we need the practice. Our skills in the bedroom are pretty damn good." Brooke smirked. She kissed Julian. One thing led to another and they ended up in the bedroom.

"What school do you go to?" Sam asked.

"USC," Michael replied.

Sam hadn't realized he was in college. He looked about her age, but it was hard to tell. She couldn't believe a ridiculously good-looking college guy liked her. "What are you majoring in?"

"Business," Michael replied.

Sam raised her eyebrows. "Isn't that what everyone who doesn't know what they want to do majors in?"

"You can do a lot with business," Michael started and then he laughed. "OK. I don't know what I want to do with the rest of my life yet. I'm only eighteen. What do you want to do?"

Sam shrugged. "I like to write. It'd be cool to be a journalist or screen writer."

"USC has a good journalism school," Michael said with a grin.

"We've hung out twice, and you're already trying to get me to go to the same school as you?" Sam smirked.

"I work fast," Michael replied.

Sam raised her eyebrows. "How fast?" Michael leaned in to kiss Sam.

Jack was the only guy Sam had ever kissed before. He was sweet and it was nice, but it was nothing like this. Michael and Sam had chemistry that she'd never had with Jack.

Sam had never been this insanely attracted to a guy. She literally wanted to rip Michael's clothes off. They quickly went from an innocent kiss to heavily making out.

Sam felt Michael's hands fumbling with the buttons on her jeans and said, "No." She'd never meant for it to go this far. She didn't want to do something with Michael that she'd regret later. This was only the second time she'd been out with him!

Michael stopped immediately and pulled away from Sam. Sam blushed a little. He would probably think she was just some stupid, immature high school girl now. She didn't want to have sex with him, but she also didn't want to lose him.

"I should probably get home soon," Sam mumbled. She looked anywhere but Michael's eyes.

Michael dropped Sam off. He kissed her goodnight but kept it short and sweet. "Thanks. I had fun," Sam said quickly before getting out of the car.

"Hey. Did you have fun?" Brooke asked with a smile when Sam walked through the door.

"Yeah," Sam replied. She went straight to her room. She didn't want to talk to Brooke right now. She knew Brooke would see right through her and start asking questions.

Brooke followed Sam. "Sam, can I come in?"

Sam nodded, knowing Brooke wasn't really asking and would come in with or without permission.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Brooke said gently.

"Nothing," Sam replied. One look at Brooke's face told Sam that Brooke didn't believe her. Sam sighed. "OK, the date wasn't so good, but I DON'T want to talk about it."

"I thought you liked talking to me?" Brooke raised her eyebrows. Her tone was teasing, but Sam saw a flicker of hurt in her eyes.

"I do like talking to you, Brooke," Sam said.

"Just not about boys?" Brooke asked.

"Last time we talked about boys, it didn't go so great," Sam said with a hint of sarcasm. She remembered when Brooke found Jack climbing out of her window. Brooke thought they were having sex and freaked out.

"Sam, you had a boy in YOUR room in MY house," Brooke said sternly. "Unless you're hiding Michael in here, I won't be pissed."

Sam smiled a little. "I don't think that will be a problem. I don't think Michael will want to go out with me again."

"Then he's not very smart," Brooke said. Sam grinned. Brooke looked into Sam's eyes. "What happened? I thought he liked you."

Sam blushed. She had come to think of Brooke as her mom. Who wants to talk about making out with boys with their mom? She knew Brooke wouldn't stop until she got answers, though. "Would you want to talk to Victoria about boys?"

"OK, first of all, you did NOT just compare me to Victoria!" Brooke said with a glare. "Second of all, I would have liked to have someone to talk to, but Victoria was never there."

Sam stared at her bedspread because she was too embarrassed to look at Brooke while having this conversation. "He kissed me, and it was nice. We were making out."

Brooke took a deep breath. She had hoped that by talking to Sam about what she'd been like in high school and being honest that she regretted it, Sam wouldn't follow in her footsteps. Brooke had a feeling Sam was about to tell her she'd had sex and it was only the second time she'd hung out with this boy. "You had sex with him?" Brooke asked with a hint of anger.

Sam looked up in surprise. She saw disappointment in Brooke's eyes. "Do you really think that?" Sam looked hurt. "No, he wanted to, but I wouldn't."

Brooke breathed a huge sigh of relief. "I'm proud of you, Samantha. I wish I would have been more like you in high school. And if this boy doesn't want to be with you because you wouldn't have sex with him, then he is NOT good enough for you."

"That's easy for you to say. You would have had sex. Every guy would have given up their right arm to be with you," Sam said.

"Yes, but none of those guys meant anything to me. The first guy who cared about me is the first guy who _didn't_ have sex with me the first chance he got. You should wait for a guy who treats you how you deserve to be treated," Brooke said.

Sam nodded. "Brooke, thanks for being here."

"Always." Brooke smiled.

Later that night Sam received a text from Michael.

_Hey. Sorry if I moved too fast. I had fun_


	6. Chapter 6

"Hey Boyfriend," Brooke said with a smile as she walked in. "Where's Sam?"

"Hey Girl I Love. She went out with Michael so we have the house to ourselves." Julian shot Brooke a cocky grin. Brooke wasn't smiling. "Why don't you look happy that we have the house to ourselves?"

"She said she didn't think she was going out with him again," Brooke said. She didn't _want_ Sam going out with him again. He'd tried to have sex with her on their first date. Sam was only fifteen! Brooke trusted Sam, but she didn't trust Michael any further than she could throw him.

"She lied." Julian smirked.

He wouldn't be so cavalier about it if he knew what Brooke knew, but she wouldn't repeat what Sam had told her. It was between Brooke and Sam.

Brooke smiled. "Do you want to continue this in the bedroom?"

"I can think of better things to do in the bedroom," Julian said with a grin.

Sam had been surprised when Michael texted her after their last date. She really liked him, though, and he must not just be after sex after all if he still wanted to hang out.

It was a nice day. They were walking along the beach. Michael was wearing a white wife beater that highlighted his muscled body and red swim trunks. Sam was wearing a blue and turquoise bikini with a blue tank top and jean skirt. They both looked good, and they were both having a hard time keeping their hands off each other.

"How's school?" Michael asked.

"Boring," Sam said automatically. Michael grinned. "It's probably better when you get to choose your classes."

"It's alright," Michael said. He smirked. "I don't have class on Fridays."

"I'm jealous," Sam said with a smile. "What do you do all day?"

"Today I was lazy. I slept all day," Michael admitted. "Sometimes I surf. Have you ever surfed?"

"No," Sam replied.

"Virgin." Michael smirked. "I can teach you."

Sam blushed a little. "I'm a fast learner." Where did that come from? She _never_ flirted like this!

Michael dropped Sam off as a black sedan was dropping Victoria off. Victoria waited impatiently for the driver to get her luggage out of the trunk. She saw Sam kissing Michael.

Sam didn't notice Victoria until she got out of the car. She looked surprised to see Victoria to say the least.

"Hello Samantha," Victoria said.

"Does Brooke know you're here?" Sam asked with raised eyebrows.

Victoria smiled a little. "I thought I'd surprise my daughter. Does she know what you've been doing with that boy?"

Sam shrugged.

"Who is the boy?" Victoria asked.

"His name is Michael. Do you know him?" Sam said sarcastically with a smirk.

"Whoever he is he's not good enough for you," Victoria said.

Sam rolled her eyes. She opened the door. Brooke and Julian were sitting on the couch. Brooke looked up and smiled. "Hey. Did you have fun?"

"Brooke, Victoria is here." The words barely left Sam's mouth before Victoria followed her into the house. Brooke's smile vanished.

Victoria glared at Julian. "You. Don't just sit there. Help me with my bags."

"You must be Victoria," Julian said flatly. "You can talk to me however you want and that's fine, but when you're in my house, you _will_ be nice to Brooke or you won't be staying." Victoria looked taken aback. Julian got up to take Victoria's bags to the guest room.

"What are you doing here?" Brooke sounded exasperated.

"It's nice to see you, too," Victoria said sarcastically. She pulled a tabloid out of her purse and held it up. "I read about my daughter's move to LA and engagement. Congratulations."

"You don't get to be upset that I didn't tell you. Every time I try to talk to you, you're too busy for me," Brooke said with a hint of anger.

Sam took the magazine from Victoria's hand and flipped through it until she found the article. "Good picture," she said with a smirk.

Julian returned from the guest room and looked over Sam's shoulder. "Damn. We look good together." Brooke smiled.

"I'm surprised your head can fit in the picture," Sam said sarcastically.

"Have you set a date yet?" Victoria asked.

Sam smirked and opened her mouth to respond, but shut it quickly when she saw the warning look on Brooke's face.

"We just got engaged, Victoria," Brooke said.

"How did he propose?" Victoria asked.

Sam's smirk returned. "Well, I ran away to LA and when Brooke came to get me, he proposed."

Victoria smiled a little. "Well played." She approached Brooke and inspected the ring. "I like the ring."

"Sam helped pick it out," Julian said.

"Samantha's a Davis. She has excellent taste," Victoria said.

"In jewelry. Apparently not in people," Brooke said. She hated Sam's friendship with her mother. She was a little jealous, but she was mostly just concerned that Victoria would hurt Sam. Victoria rolled her eyes.

Everyone went to bed because it was getting late.

"I can't believe she's here!" Brooke complained.

"I can," Julian replied. He smirked a little. "Maybe we should introduce her to my dad. They'd get along great."

"No. That would be weird," Brooke said quickly. "And double the evil."

"Are you going to invite her to the wedding?" Julian asked.

"I don't know," Brooke replied. "Are you going to invite your dad?"

"No," Julian said quickly.

"I wish I could do that," Brooke murmured. Julian shot her a questioning look. "Stop caring. I've always tried to make her proud of me. I've always cared what she thinks about everything I do. It doesn't matter how horrible she is to me. I still care."

"She's proud of you. She's here because she wants to be a part of your life. She just doesn't know how to show it," Julian said.

"She was never there when I was growing up. She didn't even want me," Brooke muttered.

"How did you become such a good mom with her as an example?" Julian wondered.

"I think I'm a good mom _because_ of Victoria," Brooke replied.

"She showed you what not to do?" Julian said with a smirk.

"Yeah. Whenever I don't know what to do, I think to myself what would Victoria do and then I do the opposite," Brooke said with a hint of sarcasm.

Julian grinned. "It's working. Sam loves you."


	7. Chapter 7

"Hey, where are you going?" Brooke asked when Sam appeared wearing a black swimsuit with a blank tank top and jean shorts.

"The beach," Sam replied.

"With who?" Brooke asked. She had a feeling she knew who Sam was going with, but she was hoping she was wrong.

"Michael," Sam replied.

"I thought you weren't going to go out with him again," Brooke said with a disapproving look.

"I didn't think he'd ask me out again. I never said I wouldn't go out with him if he did," Sam said.

Brooke tried to stay calm. She didn't want to make Sam too scared to talk to her about boys, but she also didn't want Sam going out with Michael. "Are you sure you want to go out with a boy who doesn't treat you how you deserve to be treated?"

"It's not like that. He's good to me," Sam argued. She was beginning to regret telling Brooke about her first date with Michael.

"Was he good to you when he tried to have sex with you on the first date?" Brooke asked with a hint of anger.

"He hasn't done anything since then!" Sam cried out.

"And that makes it OK?" Brooke asked with raised eyebrows.

"He can't turn back time! What do you want from him? He's trying!" Sam said desperately. She had a feeling nothing she or Michael could do would redeem him in Brooke's eyes.

Brooke wanted him to stay the hell away from her daughter. She took a deep breath to calm down. "I just want what's best for you, Samantha."

"What makes you so sure Michael isn't good for me?" Sam demanded.

"I know guys like that," Brooke said.

"Guys like what? Guys that want to have sex? I think that's all guys," Sam said with a hint of sarcasm.

"Yeah, but not all guys try to have sex with my fifteen year old daughter on their first date!" Brooke said with a hint of anger.

"You're unbelievable! You think you're the only one that can change?" Sam muttered.

"Watch it," Brooke warned. She didn't raise her voice, but she shot Sam a fierce look. "And no, I don't think I'm the only one that can change, but I don't think Michael has changed that much in a matter of days. It took me years to change."

Sam rolled her eyes. "Can I go?"

Brooke sighed. "Yeah."

"Are you sure you're ready?" Michael asked as he and Sam walked toward the water with surfboards. He'd just shown her the basics.

"Let's see how good a teacher you are," Sam said with a smirk.

They paddled out and waited for a wave. "Here's a wave," Michael said. He waited until it was close. "OK…now."

They both popped up on their surfboards. Michael rode the wave skillfully. He glanced back at Sam. She was doing well for a few minutes, but then she fell.

It happened quickly. One minute Sam was smiling as she rode the wave, and the next the force of the current was pushing her down under the water. The saltwater stung Sam's eyes and nose. She fought her way back up to the surface.

"Hey, you OK?" Michael asked.

Sam rolled her eyes as she smoothed her now wet hair back. "Yeah, I'm just peachy."

Michael laughed. "You did well for your first time."

"I'm sorry. Did you see me fall?" Sam asked incredulously.

"Yeah, but you did well for a few minutes. That's longer than most people," Michael commented.

"I don't like surfing," Sam muttered.

"You're giving up?" Michael asked with a hint of disappointment.

"No!" Sam yelled. She probably would have said yes if he'd worded the question differently, but she hated the idea of giving up.

They surfed until dusk. Sam had no idea how physically exhausting surfing would be. Paddling out was strenuous. Her muscles were already stiff.

"Do you want to go home or do you want to go back to my apartment and hang out for a little while?" Michael asked.

"Let's go back to your apartment," Sam said. She realized how that might sound on it's own and quickly added, "To hang out."

Michael showed Sam around the small two-bedroom apartment he shared with a roommate. "You want to watch a movie or something?"

"Sure," Sam replied. She browsed his movie selection and chose _The Hangover_.

Sam groaned as she lowered herself down onto the couch. Michael smirked. "You sore?"

"Yes, I hurt in places I didn't even know could hurt," Sam whined.

Michael started rubbing her shoulders where she was sore. His touch was gentle on her stiff muscles. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the massage. The back rub left Sam relaxed. She rested her head on Michael's shoulder. They'd only watched about half an hour of the movie before they both fell asleep on the couch.

Julian, Brooke and Victoria were sitting in the living room watching TV.

"Where is Samantha?" Victoria asked.

"She's out with Michael," Brooke replied.

"He's not good enough for her," Victoria muttered.

"I'm shocking myself by saying this, but we actually agree on something," Brooke said.

"Then why are you letting her go out with him?" Victoria demanded.

"I can't tell her who she can and cannot go out with," Brooke said in an exasperated tone.

"I know you can't choose your daughter's friends. That's a lesson I like to call the Peyton Sawyer debacle. But, you shouldn't let Samantha be with this boy without supervision," Victoria said.

Brooke raised her eyebrows. "Are you serious? I had NO supervision when I was in high school."

"Yes, and telling me how bad I was at being a mother is your favorite pastime," Victoria retorted.

"Sam's a good kid. She loves Brooke. She won't do anything to disappoint her," Julian said defensively.

Brooke smiled gratefully at her fiancé. "Thank you."

"You need to be careful," Victoria warned.

Brooke and Julian started getting ready for bed around ten o'clock.

"Sam's not home yet," Victoria said in a disapproving tone.

"That's because her curfew isn't until midnight," Brooke said through gritted teeth.

Brooke and Julian went into their bedroom. Brooke slammed the door behind her. "Don't kill your mother," she muttered under her breath.

Julian laughed. "What's so bad about her caring about Sam?"

"I can't believe she has the nerve to give me parenting tips! I didn't have a curfew. I had no supervision. I don't think she would have noticed if I lit myself on fire," Brooke vented.

"I think she would have noticed when the fire alarm went off," Julian said with a smirk.

Brooke and Julian drifted off to sleep. Brooke groaned when Victoria flipped the lights on at six am. She pulled a pillow over her head. "Cut it out!"

Victoria stood over Brooke's bed and tapped her foot impatiently. "Brooke, this is serious."

"Ugh, whatever it is can wait an hour," Brooke whined.

"No, it can't! Samantha didn't come home last night," Victoria said, her voice laced with concern.

Both Brooke and Julian shot bolt upright.

"What do you mean she didn't come home?" Brooke asked with fear in her eyes.

"I just woke up. I was going to get coffee. Sam's door is open. She's not here. Her bed hasn't been slept in," Victoria explained.

Brooke got out of bed and put her robe on. She went into Sam's room to see for herself. She wanted more than anything to find Sam sleeping in her bed. She wanted this to be a cruel joke, but somehow she knew it wasn't. As horrible as Victoria was, even she wouldn't joke about Sam.

Brooke checked her cell phone, but there weren't any messages from Sam. That was when her fear turned into sheer terror. She knew Sam wouldn't just stay out all night without calling. Sam had to know how worried Brooke would be. "Why didn't she call?" Brooke dialed Sam's cell and waited impatiently. It rang several times before going to voicemail. "Why isn't she answering?" She sounded hysterical.

"What should we do?" Julian asked, his voice laced with concern.

"I don't know. I don't even know where to look for her here. I don't know where Michael lives," Brooke said quickly, growing more and more panicked with each word she spoke.

"Maybe we should call the police," Julian suggested.

"No, they won't help," Brooke said with a hint of anger. She didn't think she'd ever forget the night she'd found Sam in X's house. She'd begged the police for help, and they'd done nothing.

Sam stirred when her cell phone rang. She woke up and looked around. It took her a minute to figure out where she was. She looked at her cell phone. She saw that Brooke called. Then she saw the time.

She'd been out all night. She knew Brooke would be worried sick.

"Michael, wake up," Sam said. Michael opened his eyes groggily. "You have to take me home now."

"What's going on?" Michael asked sleepily.

"We fell asleep. I've been out all night. My mom is going to kill me," Sam cried out.

Michael sensed the desperation in Sam's voice and sprung into action. He got her home in record time.

"Do you want me to come in with you?" Michael asked.

"No," Sam said quickly. Sam didn't even want to think about what Brooke would do to Michael if she could get her hands on him.

Sam opened the door. Brooke was pacing in the kitchen. She stopped when she saw Sam in the doorway. She breathed a sigh of relief. "Sam!" She was at the teen's side in seconds, engulfing her in a hug. As soon as she released Sam, Julian pulled the teen in for a hug.

"I'm sorry." Sam's voice came out as a barely audible whisper. She was scared because she knew that their rapidly fading worry would soon be replaced with anger.

"Where the hell have you been?" Brooke screamed.

"She's been with that boy," Victoria said knowingly.

"Sam, is that true?" Julian asked. His voice was the least harsh, but it held disappointment.

"Yeah, but-"

"You were out all night with a boy?" Brooke said with venom in her voice.

Sam nodded. "But we didn't do anything."

"You expect me to believe that you stayed out all night and nothing happened?" Brooke spat out.

"You're just mad because you were totally slutty when you were fifteen! I'm not having sex! Nothing happened, and you know it!" Sam cried out.

"Sam, Brooke's changed. You will not talk to her like that," Julian scolded.

"You're grounded!" Brooke screamed.

"Fine!" Sam yelled. She went to her room and slammed the door.

Brooke followed closely behind her. Sam looked up when the door she'd just slammed opened. She swallowed when she saw Brooke. Brooke looked like she wanted to kill her.

"We're not done with this conversation," Brooke said sternly. "What the hell were you thinking?"

Sam looked at Brooke with tears in her eyes. "Why should I tell you? You don't believe me."

"TELL ME!" Brooke screamed.

"Fine! I didn't mean to stay out all night! We fell asleep!" Sam cried out.

Brooke took a deep breath. "OK, where did you fall asleep?"

"At Michael's apartment," Sam replied.

"And his parents didn't notice that their son's girlfriend SPENT THE NIGHT?" Brooke demanded.

Sam sighed. She had never lied to Brooke about Michael, but she had intentionally neglected to mention Michael's age. She had a feeling that Brooke wouldn't be OK with her dating a guy who was in college. "He doesn't live with his parents."

"Where does he live?" Brooke asked.

"He lives in an apartment," Sam replied.

"That's not what I meant, and you know it! Who does he live with, Samantha?" Brooke said with a hint of anger.

"A roommate," Sam said quietly.

"How old is Michael?" Brooke asked in a deadly quiet tone.

"Eighteen," Sam admitted.

"Is he in high school?" Brooke asked.

Sam shook her head. "He's in college."

"Unbelievable! You've been going out with a boy who is in college, and you never told me! You're fifteen years old!" Brooke fumed.

"You never asked me," Sam retorted.

"Samantha!" Brooke warned.

"Sorry," Sam mumbled.

"OK, here's the deal. You're grounded for three weeks. One week for sneaking around with a statutory rapist. Another week for missing curfew. And we're gonna add another week for being a smartass," Brooke said angrily.

"He's not a statutory rapist! We didn't even have sex!" Sam protested.

Brooke raised her eyebrows. "Do you want to make it another week?"

"No," Sam said quickly.

"I'm so pissed off right now! When I actually let you out of the house again, there are some new rules. I will approve any guy you go out with-"

"You can't tell me who I can go out with!" Sam protested.

"Then maybe you won't be going out with ANY boys," Brooke said sternly. "We'll finish this conversation later. I think I might kill you if I try to finish it now."


	8. Chapter 8

Brooke emerged from Sam's room. She actually looked even more pissed off now than she did when she stalked after Sam, which Julian wouldn't have believed possible.

"Is she still alive?" Julian asked with a smirk.

"Yes, but I don't know for how long," Brooke replied.

"She didn't call you a slut again, did she?" Julian asked with a hint of anger.

"No, that would actually be easier to handle," Brooke said. She sat down beside Julian on the couch. It was early in the morning, and she was already exhausted.

Julian put his arm around Brooke. She rested her head on his shoulder. "What happened?" Julian asked.

"Well, she spent the night in her eighteen year old boyfriend's parentless apartment," Brooke said.

"He's eighteen?" Julian asked.

Brooke nodded. "Oh, and in college."

Julian's eyes widened. "She's fifteen!"

"Yeah, going on thirty," Brooke said with a hint of sarcasm.

"But she's not even legal," Julian protested.

"Do you want to know what our daughter said when I pointed that out?" Brooke asked. Her tone made it clear that whatever Sam said only infuriated her more. She didn't wait for a response. "He's not a statutory rapist because they didn't have sex."

Julian smiled a little at Brooke referring to Sam as their daughter. Brooke noticed the smile and glared at him. "What part of that makes you happy?" She demanded.

"The part where you called her our daughter," Julian replied.

"You want her? Because right now I'd give her away," Brooke muttered. They both knew she wasn't serious. She had proved more than once that she would never give up on Sam. She was just angry.

"I want her, and I really want her mom," Julian replied.

"Good answer," Brooke said.

"I'm going to go talk to our daughter," Julian said.

Julian knocked on Sam's door. "Samson, can I come in?"

Sam breathed a sigh of relief when she heard Julian's voice. She'd been scared Brooke was back to scream at her some more. "Yeah."

"Sam, what's going on with you?" Julian asked.

"Nothing. I'm grounded," Sam said with a hint of sarcasm.

"You're lucky to be alive. I thought Brooke was going to kill you," Julian said.

"When Jack shoplifted those hot dogs and I covered for him, you were the only one who believed I didn't steal them. Nothing happened last night. We weren't having sex or anything. We just fell asleep. Do you believe me?" Sam said.

"That's not true. You promised Jack you wouldn't tell. You were being a good friend. But you know Brooke would have believed you if you'd told her what happened. She felt terrible. And this is not the same thing. Trust me, I'm glad you didn't have sex," Julian said emphatically. "But you still missed curfew. And what's this about you dating an eighteen year old?"

"Why does his age matter?" Sam asked.

"It's illegal," Julian said.

"Actually it's only illegal if we have sex and I told you we didn't have sex!" Sam argued.

"He's too old for you," Julian said in a matter of fact tone.

"It's not like he's robbing the cradle. He's only three years older than me!" Sam pointed out.

"I know three years isn't a lot, but when you're in high school and he's in college, it's a big difference," Julian said.

"The only difference is that he's more mature than high school boys, and so am I. I've been taking care of myself for forever. I don't have anything in common with anyone my age," Sam retorted.

"What about Jack?" Julian asked.

"Jack had been taking care of himself for forever. He was like me. But that doesn't matter because he's gone," Sam said with a hint of sadness.

"What did Brooke say when you told her all this?" Julian asked.

"She didn't stop screaming at me long enough for me to get a word in edgewise," Sam muttered.

"Sam, you have to tell her what you just told me," Julian said firmly.

Sam sighed. "Fine."

Sam went into the living room and sat down beside Brooke on the couch. Brooke stared at her. She hadn't expected Sam to come out of her room. "I'm still mad at you."

"Trust me, I'm angrier. You can be mad at me for missing curfew. That's fine. But you can't be mad at me because of Michael's age. His age shouldn't matter," Sam said.

"It _does_ matter," Brooke argued.

"Why?" Sam asked.

"Because you're in high school!" Brooke pointed out.

"And he's in college. And he's more mature than high school boys, but so am I. I've been taking care of myself for forever. I don't have anything in common with anyone my age. Jack was the only exception," Sam said.

Brooke's icy glare thawed a little. "I know you're more mature than most teens, but you aren't eighteen. You _are_ still a child. You don't have to take care of yourself anymore. And you're _not_ old enough to be with an eighteen year old."

"You can't tell me who I can go out with!" Sam yelled.

"Actually I can! You are MY daughter. I can tell you what to do and you WILL do what I say unless you'd rather spend the rest of your life grounded," Brooke said with a hint of anger.

"You haven't liked Michael since I told you what happened on our first date! You're just using his age as an excuse to keep me away from him!" Sam cried out. She shook her head. "I didn't have sex with him. I talked to you because you said I could always talk to you about anything. Now I wish I hadn't told you anything! I've done everything you wanted me to and you're punishing me for it!"

"No, I am punishing you because you broke the rules!" Brooke screamed. She took a deep breath to calm down. "I am proud of you for not having sex and coming to me, but you can't use that as an excuse to do whatever you want."

"Fine," Sam muttered. She stomped off to her room and slammed the door behind her.

Julian returned the living room after he heard Sam's door slam. He sat down beside Brooke and rubbed her back comfortingly. "It sounds like that went well," he said with a hint of sarcasm. "Did she talk to you about Jack?"

"Yeah," Brooke replied.

"And?" Julian asked.

Brooke sighed. "I know she's had a hard life. I wish I could go back and fix things for her, but I can't."

"It's not your fault you weren't there for the first fourteen years of her life. You couldn't have been. You're fixing things for her now. She's made so much progress in the short time you've been in her life. She's a good kid. She's going to be a great girl by the time you're done with her," Julian said.

Brooke smiled. "I love you."


End file.
